Hot Leg in their pomp

Hot Leg – Justin Hawkins bounces back

By Sarah Walters

LOOKING at the pouting ensemble that now surrounds Justin Hawkins, it’s difficult to imagine that he stumbled upon Hot Leg’s members by accident.

Does the man best known as the former frontman of The Darkness really expect us to imagine he unearthed these gold lamé-clad rockers as they now appear before us?

More likely that he invited them into his walk-in wardrobe, told them to squeeze into anything that fitted and handed out a standard issue Rod Stewart wig…

Hawkins’ new gaggle of cock-rockers do certainly look like the sort of fellas who would pump out the band’s Eighties hair rock sound; Pete ‘Liquid Guitar Hands’ Rinaldi is apparently known as the Axemeister General, while Samuel SJ Stokes on bass and former session drummer Darby Todd man The Power Zone.

Brighter lights

Their biggest profile gig to date has been a success stunt to get into the Guinness Book Of Records last November, a stunt that scored them a mention in the book for the highest number of people playing air guitar all at the same time.

Their debut album, Red Light Fever, meanwhile hit the charts at a surprisingly low 81, sinking out of the top 100 within a week.

Still, at least they’re starting life in the Academy 3 and not heading back to the King’s Arms in Salford – the site of Hawkins’ famous diva outburst in the early days of The Darkness.

Is the only way up? CityLife can’t make up its mind; Hawkins has, after all, burnt out brighter lights than this before…

Academy 3, Wednesday, March 4, £11.

Published: Fri, 20 February, 2009

www.citylife.co.uk